NHL trading deadline coming up

[Michael K.]

Start the rumors and speculation. It's bound to be a weird period, what with teams keeping one eye on the CBA (or lack of) and its implications. I have no idea which things are going to go - whether teams out of the hunt (there aren't that many of them right now, by the way) are going to dump a lot of players, or if things are going to stay pretty static.

For my part, I'm most interested in seeing what the Devils do; not only is this the time of year when Lou traditionally pulls off some minor masterpiece of a trade, but we've got to see how the Devils deal with the absence of Scott Stevens - potentially for the rest of the season. Do we get another top-line veteran defenseman (Gonchar? Dare I even imagine it.....Leetch?) or try and get a scorer? Or is it going to be just another Grant Marshall/Claude Lemieux part deux-type trade? I really don't have any idea.

Post your trade rumors and wishes for your team here.

[Jeff]

The Avs radio team seemed to think the Devils are the front runners to land Zhamnov from Chicago. Terrific talent if he feels like playing. Would Bondra be a good fit in NJ?

Bruins, don't get to see them often, but I'd think they could use some defensive depth, particularly a blueliner who scores a goal more than once every three months. Don't expect them to take on a past-July 1 contract though.

Avs, need another tough, character defenseman. Just when you think Martin Skoula's playing better, he turns in an useless performance like tonight. With Blake out for a few weeks, depth is a problem. A solid #5 guy, say Bob Boughner or Glen Wesley, would be helpful. Or maybe Lyle Odelein? Don't need a Norris candidate, just someone who can play 10-15 min a night, throw a few hits, and provide support for Blake/Foote/Skrastins/Morris/Liles.

[Freestyle2000]

Originally posted by Jeff
Avs, need another tough, character defenseman. Just when you think Martin Skoula's playing better, he turns in an useless performance like tonight. With Blake out for a few weeks, depth is a problem. A solid #5 guy, say Bob Boughner or Glen Wesley, would be helpful. Or maybe Lyle Odelein? Don't need a Norris candidate, just someone who can play 10-15 min a night, throw a few hits, and provide support for Blake/Foote/Skrastins/Morris/Liles.

He doesn't fit that bill, but I want Sergei Gonchar.

Hey, we've raped the Caps twice already anyway...

Defense is the Achillies heel for Colorado, mainly because of how thin the roster is. With everyone healthy, we can go, but missing Blake is a huge hit.

Anyone who needs anything should first go to Washington. I think we're looking at the makings of a tremendous fire sale there - losing tens of millions a year and going nowhere this season. The CBA "break" or "strike" or "lockout" will make a good dividing point for teams to start rebuilding.

RS

[ticogordo]

While I have been an huge proponent of getting rid of Skoula, now is not the time. He really is the best 6th defenseman in the league. and unless the Avs are going to get a ridiculous return, they should not trade him. That goes for the rest of the active roster (and some of the injured reserve)
Both Blake and Footer can play close to 30 minutes a game, Morris and Skratch can both put up 22-26 minutes a game. Liles can fill in, and Skoula (especially on the power play) is a non-factor and with Blake to take the pressure off can be effective. The defense is not the achilles heel, although injuries will affect us (see last night)

The Avvies just need to get healthy.

The only reason i can foresee Pierre Lacroix trading anyone at this point is to keep any of the other western teams from getting a great player. Zhamnov, Gonchar, or Lang would make either Detroit or Vancouver an extremely dangerous team.
The Avs have no one in the press box OR in hershey, so trading would take someone off the active roster, which should not be done, within reason (jovo-cop for skoula would be a no-brainer )

[Jeff]

Wasn't advocating necessarily trading Skoula, but he was fooking awful last night. Maybe I overreacted a bit, but I'd like to see another blueliner. D.J. Smith's all they've got at Hershey, but he's a seventh defenseman. Selanne seems to be picking up his game, so I don't see forwards being brought in. Of course, knowing Pierre, guaranteed he'll do just that. ;)

[Michael K.]

Bondra to the Sens for prospects. Like Ottawa needs more offense.

[Jeff]

E.J. Hradek's take on sellers:

http://sports.espn.go.com/nhl/columns/story?columnist=hradek_ej&id=1737940

Not a shabby Nashville debut for Steve Sullivan, eh? Hat trick. Always been one of my favorite players, maybe because he's about the same size as me, yet real gritty.

[Jacen McCullough]

For Hradek's sake, he'd better be wrong. I'd rather go another decade without a playoff appearance than see Brian Leetch in another jersey. I don't care what's being offered, when someone puts in that kind of service, in a time when lifers are rare, you let them retire in the freaking colors.

[soccernutter]

Originally posted by Michael K.
Bondra to the Sens for prospects. Like Ottawa needs more offense.

I'm happy for Bondra - I now hope Ottawa wins it all.

[afgrijselijkheid]

has anybody heard gonchar to the BLUES talk lately or did that die down?

[otterulz]

I think the Rangers are gonna trade a promising youngster(s) (Lundmark, Tyutin) for a current or former Edmonton Oiler.

Rangers beat the Isles 6-2. 5-0 against them this season and 7-0-2 since Dunham became a Ranger. The game was exciting and as expected, there were fights. I like how Cairns was mad at Purinton and yaps about his cheap shot and how there's a code of honor you're supposed to follow. I guess he doesn't remember butt-ending Sandy McCarthy in the face after he scored a goal. Of course Steve McKenna reminded him of the code afterwards. DiPietro acted like a little bitch too. Dunham should've come out and beat his ass. Would've won tons of brownie points for that one. Also Jason Blake trying to pick a fight with Messier. That's so cute. Messier had Blake's jersey around his neck so tight that he practically turned purple. He's 43, but our captain still has plenty of fight left in him. And when they announced his double minor (don't know how he got more then Blake), the Garden crowd let him know how they felt about him. Of course the Rangers play the Devils next and will not win till next Thursday when they face......the Isles.

[Michael K.]

Originally posted by otterulz
Of course the Rangers play the Devils next and will not win till next Thursday

The way the Devils are playing lately....:(

[Jeff]

Skoula to Anaheim for Kurt Sauer and a draft pick:

http://sportsillustrated.cnn.com/2004/hockey/nhl/02/21/bc.hkn.avalanche.skoula.ap/index.html

One 23 year old for another? I don't get it, unelss the Avs brass is as down on Skoula as I am. The Boughner deal was a good one, a solid, physical, depth-providing blueliner for a third round pick.

[DoyleG]

The two names from the Oilers to watch would be Laraque and Salo.

[SABuffalo786]

I'd like to say Kolzig to the Sabres for Biron/Noronen and draft picks/prospects, but I know Darcy Regir too well. :mad:



Oh and sounds like Bondra was expensive. :rolleyes:


Good Christ, all we needed to do was throw Klepis and some draft picks at Washington and he could've been ours. Include that with the above goalie trade, and we've got a playoff team.

[JMU Soccer!]

Good luck Peter Bondra and go Sens.

[ticogordo]

Originally posted by Jeff
Skoula to Anaheim for Kurt Sauer and a draft pick:

http://sportsillustrated.cnn.com/2004/hockey/nhl/02/21/bc.hkn.avalanche.skoula.ap/index.html

One 23 year old for another? I don't get it, unelss the Avs brass is as down on Skoula as I am. The Boughner deal was a good one, a solid, physical, depth-providing blueliner for a third round pick.

I don't think that the Avs brass was as down on Skoula as everybody thinks, I think this was a lessening of salary while picking up a guy that:
a) the Avs brassed loved - they drafted him a couple of years ago
b) who could learn to become a defensive stalwart from Footer
c) who will provide a much better piece ot the defensive puzzle of the Avs (Blake, Liles, and Morris are all the offense that we need without creating a defensive liability within the ranks) than Skoula did.
d) a guy who was not already hated by the fanbase.

[Jeff]

The Avs TV guys just said they're nine deep on D now:

Foote (returned tonight)
Blake (also)
Morris
Skrastins (Highway Robbery this summer by Lacroix)
Boughner
Sauer
Liles (who may play a bit of forward tonight)
McAllister
Brett Clark? (just sent back to Hershey)

Now I'm no longer concerned that D.J. Smith will get recalled, then get asked to be more than a sixth or seventh defenseman, which he is.

[otterulz]

Rumors of a fire sale for any Ranger. Sounds like none of them are untouchable. The one rumor that upsets me the most is Leetch to the Stars. Leetch is red and blue through and through. He has no other team and cannot play for another team, plain and simple. It was bad enough that he got rid of Graves, but if Sather trades Leetch, then I officially go on protest as a Ranger fan. I wouldn't be surprised if a rookie like Fedor Tyutin gets traded for another past-his-prime player though. After all, it wouldn't be a Ranger trading deadline without all the chaos.

[BlueMeanie]

Originally posted by otterulz
It was bad enough that he got rid of Graves, but if Sather trades Leetch, then I officially go on protest as a Ranger fan.
I think what we'll see this year is mostly trades of guys like Leetch (solid, older vets on bad teams who are out of contract after the season) for prospects and draft picks. Nobody knows what's happening after this season, because of the CBA, so I don't think teams will be interested in inheriting too many multiyear contracts. And I wouldn't be surprised if players like Leetch turned around and re-signed with their old teams once the dust settles. So, basically, he'd be like a rent-a-player for a couple months, then probably a Ranger again.

FWiW, the Mercury News reported earlier this week that the Sharks are looking at Leetch and Gonchar because they want a defenseman to run the PP. (Both have played for Ron Wilson before; Gonchar in DC and Leetch on Team USA.) Not sure if I agree with doing that. SJ has had really good even-strength D and PKs from 7 defensemen this season, and I don't know why you'd want to drop a guy out of the rotation just to bring in some dude to marginally improve the PP. If they have to do it, I'd rather it was Gonchar and they did something to try to lock him up for the future.